The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Luis Planas, has valued the work of agri-food cooperatives and their ability to generate wealth and employment, which contributes significantly to the economic and social structuring of rural territories.
Luis Planas visited today the production center of the Cooperativa Agro Sevilla Aceitunas, in the Seville town of La Roda de Andalucía, and met with its governing council, with whom he reviewed the situation of the market of table olives, characterized by lower production in this campaign, due largely to the shortage of rainfall.
Regarding the tariffs imposed by the United States, which still affect Spanish black olives, the minister stressed that the Government works together with the European Commission, the Junta de Andalucía and the sector itself to reverse this situation, since it is essential to continue working through diplomatic channels to resolve this conflict. He has also assured that the new aid associated with the olive grove, with a marked social and ecological approach, will be a key tool to avoid abandoning the olive grove in areas where the cultivation plays an important productive and environmental role.
Founded in 1977, Agro Sevilla Aceitunas is a second-grade cooperative dedicated to the production and marketing of table olives, with a production of 800,000 tons. It currently consists of 12 cooperative societies, representing more than 4,000 partner farmers and generating 450 direct jobs.
In 2021, its turnover reached 149 million euros, which increased by 22% in 2022. It is the largest producer and exporter of olives in the world. In particular, it exports 95% of the volume to 75 countries and has commercial offices in the United States and Italy.
On the other hand, Luis Planas has valued the investment effort of the ministry so that Spanish farmers can have a more efficient irrigation, as a fundamental tool to achieve a more sustainable and profitable production.
In this context, Andalusia will have 123.56 million euros from the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan (17.56% of the entire plan) to finance 17 irrigation modernization projects, the autonomous community that has the most actions included in this measure.
He also recalled that the Government is accompanying the agri-food sector to overcome the current difficulties due to the increase in the price of energy and raw materials resulting from the war in Ukraine. In the case of fertilisers, around 250,000 farmers will benefit from direct aid, with a budget of EUR 300 million. In Andalusia, this measure has benefited more than 62,000 exploitation owners, who have received 62.87 million euros.